Five Mile Prairie Schoolhouse

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The original Five Mile Prairie Schoolhouse was built in 1901. It was a small one-room building that housed fourteen students and one teacher. In 1912 the school, which had become too small for the expanding Five Mile population, was replaced by a new three-story brick structure. This second school lacked basic ammenities, such as indoor plumbing and a modern heating system, and was torn down after twenty-six years of use to make way for a more up-to-date building. The third (and final) Five Mile Schoolhouse, which is still in use today, was erected in 1939 and was one of the many Works Progress Administration (WPA) projects in the region.

The new $30,000 Five Mile School/WPA project was funded by $19,788 in federal dollars and the remaining $10,000 was financed by the citizens of the Five Mile Prairie community. Upon its completion in November 1939, the new grade school boasted two classrooms, a large auditorium, indoor plumbing and a formal dining room. One of the classrooms held first through fourth grade students, while the other classroom held fifth through eighth graders. By 1941, seventh and eighth grades were moved to other schools in the nearby Mead School District and the Five Mile Schoolhouse would, from then on, hold only first thorugh sixth graders. By 1969, the school population was at forty-four students. From 14 kids in 1901, to 44 kids in 1969; these numbers are representative of how Five Mile Prairie was spared the expansive growth of its urban counterpart, Spokane.

The year of 1970 saw, after the failure of a bond levy, the last year of instruction at the Five Mile Prairie School (for at least thirty-five years). In 1972, "People for the Preservation of Five Mile prairie Elementary", leased the old school building from the school district and utilized it for community meetings and events. In 1976, the building was closed as a community center due to an increase in costs. Mead School District #354 was, by 1976, using the boarded up building as a storage facility. The Five Mile School house was used in this manner up until 2004 when a district levy was passed and extensive renovation began, its doors reopened for instruction in 2006 as an educational resource center for the Mead School District.

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Five Mile Schoolhouse Before Reopening: A boarded-up Five Mile Prairie Schoolhouse before the Mead school district remodeled and opened it back up for use. Image courtesy of Friends of Five Mile Prairie.0ld Five Mile School: The second Five Mile Prairie Schoolhouse. This three-story structure was only in use for over 25 years. This structure had no indoor plumbing, nor did it have indoor heating. Image courtesy of Five Mile School. Grade School Students and Teacher on steps of original Five Mile Schoolhouse. : A photo of one of the first classes of students to attend the original one-room school, around 1907. Image courtesy of Five Mile School.Five Mile School Students: A photo of fifth to eighth grade students taking a school picture around 1917. Image courtesy of Five Mile School.Old Textbooks: Some old textbooks (displayed at the school) used by Five Mile School students through the 1920s. Image courtesy of Five Mile School.Recreation at Five Mile School: A photo of students playing a game of tennis at the school around 1920. Image courtesy of Five Mile School.Farm Life on the Prairie: Here are some farmers harvesting their potato crops from the fertile prairie soil around 1910-1920. Image courtesy of Five Mile School.Five Mile Prairie Schoolhouse in 2012.: How the school looks today. Brought back from the dead, the once boarded-up school is now full of students and faculty. Image courtesy of Robert Lambeth.